Dallas Theatre League Announces Rabin Award Nominations

The Dallas Area is one of the largest theatre centers in the country. The region boats more emerging theatre companies than almost any other metropolitan area in the U.S. and is home to the country's second oldest summer Shakespeare Festival. Two hundred new plays are premiered here each year—and some achieve broader success. The Dallas Theatre League (DTL) was founded in 1994 to serve and celebrate this vital artistic community.

The mission of the DTL is to unite, strengthen, and promote the theatre community in the Greater Dallas Area, working on behalf of the conviction that the performing arts are an essential public good, critical to a healthy and truly democratic society, and invaluable as a source of personal enrichment and growth.

The DTL is also the primary sponsor the annual Leon Rabin Awards, an event celebrating the diversity and excellence of live theatre in Dallas. The Awards were named after Leon Rabin, an avid and influential arts enthusiast who was at the center of every Dallas-based arts organization. The Awards serve as a means to recognize the outstanding achievements of Dallas area theatres and the artists who support them. They also give support to the next generation of Dallas artists, with a portion of event proceeds supporting the Dallas Theatre League Scholarship programs.

On September 25, 2006, the DTL announced the 2006 Rabin Award Nominations at the ArtCentre of Plano at a party hosted by the Classical Arts Company. The awards covered the Dallas area Theatre Season from September 1, 2005 to August 31, 2006.

Every year, three special Rabin Awards are presented to honor outstanding achievement in a specific area.

They are:

The Career Achievement Award – presented each year to an individual or individuals with significant connections to Texas who through their work in theatre have consistently demonstrated a high level of expertise and professionalism. This effort has lead the contributions of Texas theatre artists to be reflected positively to the world at large. This year's recipient is Margo Jones (posthumously.) Miss Jones' Dallas theatre, established in 1947, was the first modern professional resident theatre in the U.S. She was mentor to playwrights such as Tennessee Williams, William Inge, Horton Foote, Jerome Lawrence, and Robert E. Lee. Miss Jones co-directed the first Broadway production of The Glass Menagerie.

The Standing Ovation Award – this award was created to honor an individual or organization whose contribution to the advancement of theatre in Dallas has been extraordinary and deserves special recognition. This year's honoree is Raphael Parry. Mr. Parry has been affiliated with Shakespeare Dallas for over 20 years—and served as Artistic Director for the previous three seasons. During his tenure with the company, he has directed six productions. Mr. Parry made his name in the Dallas theatre community first as co-founder and co-Artistic Director of the nationally acclaimed Undermain theatre, established in 1984. He gained recognition as an award winning director/actor and a savvy and experienced producer, participating in more than 100 productions at various theatres in the Dallas area.

He is a three-time recipient of Outstanding Actor by the Dallas Theatre Critics Forum Awards, a six-time recipient of Outstanding Director by Dallas Theatre Critics Forum and a two-time recipient of the Leon Rabin Award for the Best Director. He premiered or commissioned seven new plays at the Undermain, including works by Octavio Solis, Erik Ehn and John O'Keefe. Previous to his work at Shakespeare Dallas, Mr. Parry served for five years as the Artistic Director of Young Audiences of North Texas. Currently he also serves as Director of Texas Bound-Arts and Letters Live at the Dallas Museum of Art, Chief Artistic Officer at Project X: TheatreDanceMusicFilm and is a site reporter for the National Endowment for the Arts.

The Silver Ticket Award – bestowed each year to an individual, corporation or foundation whose primarily focus is not theatre-related, but whose support of theatre in the Dallas deserves special recognition. This year the award is given to Fortunato Mato of the Dallas Costume Shoppe. The Shoppe has costumed theatrical productions in the Dallas area since the 1920s. Mr. Mato is a former owner of the Shoppe who still plays an active part in the store's operations.

The Dallas Theatre League cordially invites you to the 2006 Leon Rabin Awards on Monday, November 13, 2006 at the Rosewood Center for Family Arts, 5938 Skillman, Dallas, TX. Cocktails start at 6:00PM with the Awards Ceremony commencing at 7:30PM. A reception will follow.

Tickets are $25.00 ($15.00 for members of the DTL.)

To purchase tickets, visit the Dallas Theatre League website after October 1 or phone 214.876.6638.

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About Author

Joseph Melnicoff was born in Philadelphia, and his love affair with the theater began when his parents took him to see the great Ethel Merman in Annie Get Your Gun when he was eight. He is currently working on a book, Poetry Set to Music: the Lyrics of Musical Theatre, and has plans to launch an internet series that will discuss and critique musical theatre. Joseph covers the theater scene in the Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas area (commonly known as the "Metroplex" ) for dallas.broadwayworld.com. He has a Bachelor's Degree in American Studies from Boston University and holds an MBA from Drexel University. Headshot by Mike Morgan Photography